Cornelius

• 1 min. read • grade level: 9

We have looked at many households in the Bible, and now come to a remarkable series of households in the New Testament, all, or nearly all, of which are Gentile, evidently recorded by the Holy Spirit for a special purpose. The first we meet is, as far as I know, that of Cornelius. He feared God with all his house. (Acts 10:2²A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway. (Acts 10:2)). He was right in seeing that his whole household followed him in his fear of God, and God takes special note of it. When Peter recounts his visit with Cornelius to the saints at Jerusalem, he says that the angel told Cornelius to send to Joppa for Peter, "who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be saved." (Acts 11:14¹⁴Who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be saved. (Acts 11:14)). We shall meet with almost exactly these same words in pondering another "house", so that it would seem to suggest that these very words, which include the house, are the Holy Spirit's own special message to those who truly desire to be saved. We need not now be concerned with who composed Cornelius' household, but we must note the word is the same as of old: "Thou and thy house." (Gen. 7:1¹And the Lord said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. (Genesis 7:1)).

• Cornelius